hump game (hump gam) noun. A game in which the losing team either comes back from a large deficit or remains closely competitive throughout, but is nonetheless unable to "climb over the hump" and win the game.

Usage example:The Nuggets were involved in a hump game against the Clippers last Saturday. They came so very close, but in the end they just couldn't close the deal.

Word Trivia: Close only counts in horseshoes and whatever else you can win at by coming close...and basketball most certainly does not fall into that category. That's why it's always so frustrating to watch your team come back from 20 points down only to fall short at the end of the game. It's even more frustrating when they keep the score tantalizingly close throughout, but they keep ramming their collective heads into that four or five point wall, only to fall woozy and bleeding to the floor. Take Game 1 of the Bulls/Heat series. The Bulls played with more guts and tenacity than the Heat, but they were always one or two shots away from threatening the lead. A classic hump game scenario.

Hey Chris, are you gonna let a guy in tights push you around?!

As a well-known purveyor of juvenile humor, I could of course tell you several jokes in which the punchline is dependent on the word "hump." But instead I think I'll show you a picture of one of the strangest products I've ever found on eBay (and that's saying something). Some mad taxidermist actually stuffed a group of bull frogs and then turned them into the world's most perverted amphibious conga line. I don't know whether this is sick and twisted, or just inspired genius. Which probably tells you all you need to know about me.